Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-01-24
DEFYING THE LAW.

DEFYING THE LAW.
There is no more vicious gambling than
that of the lottery, and none that is more
deceptive and demoralizing than the much
advertised Louisiana. Yet we find this
week California journals, for coin, defying
the law and devoting two and three col
umns to elaborate descriptions of the
drawings" of this method of fleeing the
people, and of accounts of the results of the
drawings. These descriptions, which are
nothing more nor less than advertising
tricks, and therefore plainly in violation
of the laws of the State, labor in detail to
prove that the drawings" are honestly"
conducted, as if that in any respect lessons
their viciousness The truth is, however,
that the lottery cannot be "honestly"
drawn, so long as the lottery concern has
not received from every quarter full re-
turns of all tickets sold Yet it is a fact
that the drawings take place irrespective
vi theSS ictuiiiS, Ihua dSSuullilS t1dI all
the tickets are sold, or else the concern
running the lottery is more than foolish in
publishing its lists before the tickets are
turned in, for all unsold tickets it would
of course, draw in its own behalf But the
dupes of this lowest form of gaming con-
tinue to be gulled, and do not pause to
reflect upon the fact that there must be
marvelously heavy percentage against
them, to justify the extraordinary outlay
made in advertising the scheme so widely
and in such various ways.
There ought to be action at this session
of the Legislature in the direction con-
templated by the Constitution and the
present law, to choke off the methods of
advertising the lottery managers now
adopt to evade the statute For instance,
Section so of the Penal Code reads:
Every person who aids or assists, either
by printing, Icriting, ADVERTISING, publishing,
or otherwise in setting up, managing or
drawing any lottery, or in selling or dis
posing of any ticket, chance or share
therein is guilty of misdemeanor."
Now, since the newspapers which adver-
tise the lottery referred to, claim that
publishing an advertisement or "a reading
account" of the "result " of drawing is
not advertising" the lottery or aiding the
sale of tickets, let some legislator who has
not the fear Of the lottery ring before his
eyes, propose an amendment to include
any form Of publication Of the results,
manner or methods, figures, numbers or
devices of drawings, or any form or recital
of the methods of drawings, or any accounts
alleged to be narratives Of the "luck" of
ticket-holders, etc Those who advertise
the schemes, no matter how they whip
the devil around the stump" violate the
law as 1t is; but remove utterly every
shadow of excuse, let the law be amended
to cover it, as suggested, and then let i. be
seen whether prosecuting officials have the
hardihood to refuse to enforce the law, and
the Legislature the courage to compel
them to pursue the offenders.
The Constitution, Article ", Section
26, declares that the Legislature shall
pass laws to prohibit the sale in this State
of lottery or gift enterprise tickets, or
tickets in any scheme in the nature of
lottery" 1t is therefore the sworn duty of
the legislators to see that the spirit of the
Constitution is given full effect in the law,
and to that end they should pass laws to
prohibit, under severer penalties than now
attach, any manner OF advertising aid
given to the sale of lottery tickets
There is not one of the San Francisco
journals reaping such large rewards from
lottery advertising, that has the COURAGE to
defend the practice, or that will advise the
people to throw their money into the NAV
of the lottery monster. There is not
among them all a single journal that viii
editorially indorse the lottery, or coun-
tenance their employees in investing in it,
o, that has the hardihood to oppose such
amendment to the law as to remove any
possible doubt as to what constitutes /" lot
terry advertising Seine hundreds of thou
sands OF dollars annually are "raked in I"
in this State by lottery swindles, and
thousands of poor dupes rob their families
of the necessities and comforts of life. in
order to indulge the fatal appetite for this
form of gambling. The commonest con-
siderations of humanity demand that so
far as it is possible for the law to do it, the
means of gratifying this appetite be re-
moved, and one of thu first steps in this
direction is to prohibit any and every form
of advertising the schemes" and to make
the inhibition so explicit that not even the
San Francisco press viii be able to evade
the law, nor the prosecuting attorneys Of
the State put in peril their Offices, by ne
glecting to bring TO punishment every of
fender.
We call the attention of the legislative
Committees on Public Morals to the need
for clearer laws upon this subject, and to